{"collection":"Northern European Mythology","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/browse/neu/mart/mart096.htm","path":"neu/mart/mart096.htm","source_url":"https://sacred-texts.com/neu/mart/mart096.htm","text":"CHAPTER VIII\nHow a senator told to Lucius of their discomfiture, and also\nof the great battle between Arthur and Lucius.\nNOW leave we King Arthur and his noble knights which had won the\nfield, and had brought their prisoners to Paris, and speak we of\na senator which escaped from the battle, and came to Lucius the\nemperor, and said to him, Sir emperor, I advise thee for to\nwithdraw thee; what dost thou here? thou shalt win nothing in\nthese marches but great strokes out of all measure, for this day\none of <163>Arthur's knights was worth in the battle an hundred\nof ours. Fie on thee, said Lucius, thou speakest cowardly; for\nthy words grieve me more than all the loss that I had this day.\nAnd anon he sent forth a king, which hight Sir Leomie, with a\ngreat army, and bade him hie him fast to-fore, and he would\nfollow hastily after. King Arthur was warned privily, and sent\nhis people to Sessoine, and took up the towns and castles from\nthe Romans. Then the king commanded Sir Cador to take the\nrearward, and to take with him certain knights of the Round\nTable, and Sir Launcelot, Sir Bors, Sir Kay, Sir Marrok, with Sir\nMarhaus, shall await on our person. Thus the King Arthur\ndisperpled his host in divers parties, to the end that his\nenemies should not escape.\nWhen the emperor was entered into the vale of Sessoine, he might\nsee where King Arthur was embattled and his banner displayed; and\nhe was beset round about with his enemies, that needs he must\nfight or yield him, for he might not flee, but said openly unto\nthe Romans, Sirs, I admonish you that this day ye fight and\nacquit you as men, and remember how Rome domineth and is chief\nand head over all the earth and universal world, and suffer not\nthese Britons this day to abide against us; and therewith he did\ncommand his trumpets to blow the bloody sounds, in such wise that\nthe ground trembled and dindled.\nThen the battles approached and shoved and shouted on both sides,\nand great strokes were smitten on both sides, many men\noverthrown, hurt, and slain; and great valiances, prowesses and\nappertices of war were that day showed, which were over long to\nrecount the noble feats of every man, for they should contain an\nwhole volume. But in especial, King Arthur rode in the battle\nexhorting his knights to do well, and himself did as nobly with\nhis hands as was possible a man to do; he drew out Excalibur his\nsword, and awaited ever whereas the Romans were thickest and most\ngrieved his people, and anon he addressed him on that part, and\nhew and slew down right, and rescued his people; and he slew a\ngreat giant named Galapas, which was a man of an huge quantity\nand height, <164>he shorted him and smote off both his legs by\nthe knees, saying, Now art thou better of a size to deal with\nthan thou were, and after smote off his head. There Sir Gawaine\nfought nobly and slew three admirals in that battle. And so did\nall the knights of the Round Table. Thus the battle between King\nArthur and Lucius the Emperor endured long. Lucius had on his\nside many Saracens which were slain. And thus the battle was\ngreat, and oftsides that one party was at a fordeal and anon at\nan afterdeal, which endured so long till at the last King Arthur\nespied where Lucius the Emperor fought, and did wonder with his\nown hands. And anon he rode to him. And either smote other\nfiercely, and at last Lucius smote Arthur thwart the visage, and\ngave him a large wound. And when King Arthur felt himself hurt,\nanon he smote him again with Excalibur that it cleft his head,\nfrom the summit of his head, and stinted not till it came to his\nbreast. And then the emperor fell down dead and there ended his\nlife.\nAnd when it was known that the emperor was slain, anon all the\nRomans with all their host put them to flight, and King Arthur\nwith all his knights followed the chase, and slew down right all\nthem that they might attain. And thus was the victory given to\nKing Arthur, and the triumph; and there were slain on the part of\nLucius more than an hundred thousand. And after King Arthur did\ndo ransack the dead bodies, and did do bury them that were slain\nof his retinue, every man according to the estate and degree that\nhe was of. And them that were hurt he let the surgeons do search\ntheir hurts and wounds, and commanded to spare no salves nor\nmedicines till they were whole.\nThen the king rode straight to the place where the Emperor Lucius\nlay dead, and with him he found slain the Soudan of Syria, the\nKing of Egypt and of Ethiopia, which were two noble kings, with\nseventeen other kings of divers regions, and also sixty senators\nof Rome, all noble men, whom the king did do balm and gum with\nmany good gums aromatic, and after did do cere them in <165>sixty\nfold of cered cloth of sendal, and laid them in chests of lead,\nbecause they should not chafe nor savour, and upon all these\nbodies their shields with their arms and banners were set, to the\nend they should be known of what country they were. And after he\nfound three senators which were alive, to whom he said, For to\nsave your lives I will that ye take these dead bodies, and carry\nthem with you unto great Rome, and present them to the Potestate\non my behalf, shewing him my letters, and tell them that I in my\nperson shall hastily be at Rome. And I suppose the Romans shall\nbeware how they shall demand any tribute of me. And I command\nyou to say when ye shall come to Rome, to the Potestate and all\nthe Council and Senate, that I send to them these dead bodies for\nthe tribute that they have demanded. And if they be not content\nwith these, I shall pay more at my coming, for other tribute owe\nI none, nor none other will I pay. And methinketh this sufficeth\nfor Britain, Ireland and all Almaine with Germany. And\nfurthermore, I charge you to say to them, that I command them\nupon pain of their heads never to demand tribute nor tax of me\nnor of my lands. Then with this charge and commandment, the\nthree senators aforesaid departed with all the said dead bodies,\nlaying the body of Lucius in a car covered with the arms of the\nEmpire all alone; and after alway two bodies of kings in a\nchariot, and then the bodies of the senators after them, and so\nwent toward Rome, and showed their legation and message to the\nPotestate and Senate, recounting the battle done in France, and\nhow the field was lost and much people and innumerable slain.\nWherefore they advised them in no wise to move no more war\nagainst that noble conqueror Arthur, for his might and prowess is\nmost to be doubted, seen the noble kings and great multitude of\nknights of the Round Table, to whom none earthly prince may\ncompare.\n<166>","title":"Le Morte d'Arthur BOOK V CHAPTER VIII","type":"page"}